Baby Steps
by CaseyBensonxo
Summary: Casey and Olivia have decided to begin the rest of their lives together. There's a thousand steps to a happy ending...beginning with meeting the parents.


"Casey, I don't know how I feel about this."

Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak returned to the living room of her two bedroom apartment, effortlessly balancing two full wine glasses, a cheese and crackers platter, and various other treats in her arms. "What is there to question?" she asked, placing everything on the coffee table and sitting on the sofa, her ankles crossed. "It's not as if I'm asking you to jump off of a cliff. It's one teensy meeting."

Sergeant Olivia Benson sighed deeply, reaching for her wine and downing half of it in one gulp. "One teensy meeting," she echoed. "One teensy meeting that could result in me needing a body bag, Casey."

Casey pouted, crawling into her girlfriend's lap. She gently nipped at Olivia's neck. "A body bag? No. Never. The worst thing they could do to you is have you sent to a work camp in Siberia." Seeing the older woman's reaction, the attorney giggled. "Relax, Olivia, I'm only kidding. Come on. You promised to meet my parents tonight."

"That was before I came to my senses. Casey, you told me your father once had your partner transferred to another country simply because he didn't want you dating him. Who knows how much power a former District Attorney and Vietnam vet possesses. I don't want to cross him by breezing in and saying 'Hi, you don't know me, but I am your daughter's latest partner.'"

"Latest partner? Thanks, Liv, I didn't realize I was such a slut."

"You know what I mean!" Olivia sighed, wrapping her arms around the beautiful woman in her lap. She brushed a scarlet curl out of Casey's face. "What if they don't accept us? You said they are strict Catholics."

Casey sighed, biting her own bottom lip thoughtfully. "Yes, but I'm their only child. They have always accepted what they know makes me truly happy. And you do, Olivia. You really do. Please give them a chance."

Olivia gently brushed her fingertips across the beautiful diamond ring on Casey's slender finger, which she had placed there only hours before. "Whatever makes you happy, honey. But if your father greets me with a rifle and a list of possible new identities, I'm blaming you."

Casey rolled her eyes. "Shut up." She glanced at the clock behind the sofa, a naughty twinkle sparkling in her emerald gaze. "You know..we have an hour before we have to be at my parents'...What if I make it worth your while?"

"Worth my while?" Olivia repeated. "Why, counselor, I do believe you just signed your own warrant." With that, the brunette easily pinned Casey onto her back, her knees on either side of the younger woman. "You owe me," she growled softly, her fingers already tugging at the zipper of Casey's dress.

**Fifty five minutes later, **Casey stood beside her girlfriend, waiting for her parents to open the door. While it was true that her father had always been overprotective, and she had little idea how her Catholic family would react to the news of a lesbian wedding, she knew in the deepest recesses of her heart that her parents would accept Olivia.

She glanced at the woman she loved with everything she had. Olivia caught her gaze, and squeezed her hand reassuringly. From her beautiful chocolate gaze to her special bond with victims, to the way she made the redhead feel every single day, Casey knew Olivia was the perfect girlfriend. How could her parents not love her?

Within seconds, the front door opened. There, standing on the front step, was a carbon copy of Casey, though seventeen years older. Beside her mother stood her former District Attorney and father, looking stern and frustrated as he always had. Casey took a deep breath and hugged her parents tightly. "Mom, Dad, thanks for having us. This is the friend I mentioned. Her name is Olivia."

Olivia shook each of their hands in turn, smiling nervously. "It's great to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Novak. You have a wonderful daughter."

"Yes we do," Steven Novak intoned, shaking her hand woodenly. His wife, however, was much warmer, inviting them inside and instructing a nearby maid to hang their coats.

"Well, Casey mentioned her important news? I'll have Veronica draw some tea. If you two would like to come to the drawing room with me, We can talk while dinner simmers. Steven, be a dear and check on that for us, will you?"

For a fleeting second, Casey and Olivia were alone. Olivia sighed. "This isn't going well," she whispered. "Casey, if they don't approve…"

"I'll still wear your ring," Casey assured her. In some ways, Olivia's nerves were kind of sexy. The cool, experienced cop with no nerves in the squadroom or the bedroom was suddenly different. It only made Casey feel more loved when she realized how much Olivia wanted to be accepted.

Olivia smiled and leaned forward, kissing the redhead quickly. The kiss only lasted for a millisecond, but as they pulled apart, Casey spotted their head maid, Veronica, glaring at them in disapproval. She muttered something in her language and bustled away. Casey and Olivia shared a worried look. If the maid didn't approve, what did that say for her parents?

A/N: So, I'm a little curious. Would you rather see Casey's parents adore Olivia or hate her for being a woman? Please let me know in a review. Thank you. And thanks for reading.


End file.
